Federal government officials look to state government officials to take on responsibilities and costs of “No Child Left Behind” so that the taxpayer will not be burdened. State officials want federal government officials to be responsible for taking care of the border so that the taxpayer is not burdened. Governor Janet Napolitano just recently vetoed a bill that would have criminalized illegal immigrants and forced local authorities to take on the responsibility of the expense of enforcing that law, again to lessen the burden of the taxpayer. Local officials argue with state officials about providing enough funds to pay for health care and education.

All of this arguing is about which government entity is to pay the expenses incurred in the name of lessening the burden of the taxpayer. The reality is the taxpayer pays for all city, county, state, and federal government expenditures. When a local official says he wants the federal government or state government to pay for an expense, the taxpayer pays. There is no lessening of any financial burden placed upon the taxpayer. No matter which government entity, local, state, or federal pays a bill for any situation, whether it is for immigration, social security, or healthcare, the taxpayer is burdened with the financial expense of paying the bill. To add insult to injury, if the taxpayer refuses to pay, the taxpayer becomes a criminal and must pay a fine or be hauled off to jail.

The founders of United States set the precedent that today’s American must follow if today’s American does not want to pay the price of being a criminal; not look to government for solutions to immigration, social security, education, and everything else individuals encounter.

The founder’s original vision was to look to the individual to solve these situations. They understood what government is and knew utilizing force to settle matters was counterproductive and extremely unhealthy as many individuals can be physically harmed or die when coercive force is used to settle disagreements and situations. The founders established a system making government coercive force legitimate only when it is used to defend an individual or individuals from an initiation of force.

If some one or some ones are attempting to take an individual’s life, liberty, or property by force, then the force of government is legitimate. This is the reason for local police, state troopers, and national armies. These individuals and their superiors are not to dictate how an individual is to live his life, but rather to defend the individual in his or her right to live his or her life the way he or she chooses.

The Yuma community will have the opportunity to visit with Richard Henry Lee, one of the many great founding fathers of the United States, to find out why the founders did not encourage individuals to look to government to solve its immigration situation, social security, education, or any of the myriad of other situations individuals experience so that the individual would not become a criminal.

Rather, he will explain why the founders established a government limited only to defending the inalienable rights of the individual and looked to the liberty and freedom of the individual to solve his own social security, immigration, and education situations.

The Yuma community can visit with Richard Henry Lee on these and other matters Tuesday, May 9 at 7 PM at the Booth Machinery conference hall located on Araby Road two blocks north of 32nd Street.

The founders have answers for today’s situations. The individual need only take the time to listen to them and read what they had to say on the subject of government. There is no charge to visit with the gentleman from Virginia.